Credit cards with embedded chip

Genuine chip-and-pin often require a personal identification number -- that's where the name comes from. In some places, smaller purchases won't require the entry of a PIN, sometimes called tap-and-go. In Canada the current limit is $100, but not all merchants have this advanced feature on their card readers. Entering a PIN takes maybe two seconds, tops, so it is hardly a problem.
Getting a credit card cash advance at an ATM or from a bank teller should only be done in a dire emergency. That money is considered a loan and invokes an immediate interest charge, often 19 per cent or higher. In some systems the charge will be applied against the entire balance on the card, not just the advance. Money withdrawn through a debit/ATM cards comes from your own chequing account so incurs on interest, although fees for foreign exchange and using another bank's service are common.

Please refer to numerous previous threads. Most US chip cards are still Chip and Signature. These work fine in Europe based on my experience in London, Paris and rural Switzerland last June. Some but not all banks in the US will issue a Pin if you request one for your chip card. Contactless payment cards are available in the US but are not very common at this time. No doubt the US will catch up to Europe at some point.

I have a US credit card with a chip, which I received recently. I have used it several times in Austria and have NOT had to enter a PIN. I have only had to sign the receipt.

Chip and signature works fine in Italy, Ireland, and all of UK in my experience. I've only had a "problem" at a few self service type checkouts, but even those situations have had an employee that could print off a receipt for signature.

Good luck.

As noted in previous threads, jenil, it is VERY IMPORTANT not to enter the PIN on many AMERICAN chip cards, because you will be getting a cash advance. That has expensive implications for the month you do it, and the month after, because of FEE and INTEREST charges, even if you always pay off your balance.

You are right to be confused. The industry has handled this very badly. When I called AARP about my AARP/Chase VISA, the human confirmed that the PIN is ONLY for CASH ADVANCES. Indeed, when I "inserted" (that is, used the chip) at Target and Home Depot, I was never asked for a PIN. I signed on the stylus/touch screen like I have for years, and got a paper receipt.

The good news is that if you use this card to fill up an Oyster Card or pay a toll or buy a small-value, local train ticket from a machine in much of Europe, there's a decent chance your transaction will go through, with NO PIN and NO SIGNATURE. No guarantees, though.

I have a MasterCard issued by Barclay Bank USA. It is both a Chip & PIN and CHIP & Signature card. I have used it 10 times in Europe (UK, France, Ireland). Of those 10, I had to sign 2 and enter PIN for 4, the other 4 required neither PIN nor signature.

Most chip cards issues by US based banks are Chip & Signature. Meaning your understanding of the use of a PIN is correct. The card networks know what type of card yours is when used at a terminal so it will not ask for a PIN if your card is not a PIN option card.

A lot of the previous answers have errors and mis-understandings in them.

While Europeans mostly have chip & PIN cards, in the US, almost everyone will be getting chip & signature cards. The difference is in how your purchase is validated (the chip and processing of the transaction are the same). For the most part, a US chip & signature card will work just fine everywhere with a person conducting the transaction (there are a few exceptions like Dutch train stations). You give them your card, they insert it and their machine automatically prints out a receipt (sometimes they have to push a button to print out the receipt). Tourist oriented business employees will be pretty familiar with that process.

Where it may or may not work so well is in automated machines like ticket kiosks and gas pumps. That depends on your bank's validation protocols (like non-validated approvals under $50) AND the machine's validation requirements. The only way to know is to try it. Sometimes the transaction is approved and sometimes it won't work. Always be prepared to use cash or an attendant.

"Tap-and-go" type cards are a completely different type of transaction. You do not physically insert the card to read the chip - it is done by RFID technology. Most US credit cards do not have that included. You can tell it does if there is a Wi-Fi symbol on the card.

Some US chipped credit cards will come with a PIN as a secondary validation. In that case, it will work just fine in automated machines but will always have a receipt to sign with an attendant transaction.

The purchase PIN is not the same thing as an ATM PIN. If you don't get a PIN with your chipped card (sent separately I believe), then it won't accept a PIN for purchases. You can ask for a PIN, but that will only work in ATM transactions - which is fine for a cash emergency but comes with hefty interest rates.

If you do not have a chipped card (also known as EMV), then your magnetic card will still work for most human transactions similar to how I described in the first paragraph. It will not work at all in automated machines.

To get cash, you can still use a standard US ATM/debit card. They still work in European ATMs the same way they work here.

Some US chipped credit cards will come with a PIN as a secondary validation. In that case, it will work just fine in automated machines but will always have a receipt to sign with an attendant transaction.

Douglas, I have no reason to believe there is anything inaccurate in this statement. The problem is that widely issued VISA/MC cards issued by American banks (like the AARP VISA from Chase) may include an offer with the arrival of the card to provide a PIN upon request. From the document I received, there is no way for the naive customer to understand what that PIN is good for.

When I called the 800 number for the card product, it was explicitly stated that the PIN (on that particular card) is ONLY for cash advance purposes.

Meaning no insult to anyone, many posters here are naive credit card customers, in the Silicon Valley sense of the word. They are not experts in the ins and outs of even just, American, credit cards!

You are correct Tim and explain it in more detail. It is confusing because there really are two different types of PIN for EMV cards (even though the actual number might be the same). The "cash advance" PIN can only be used for cash advances at an ATM and is tied to the magnetic strip on your card. My understanding is that it would not work with a chip-enabled purchase transaction even if you tried. The "purchase" PIN is encoded to the chip and so the bank cannot just text you a PIN for that - it has to be issued or changed while the chip is engaged at a terminal.

So what is more confusing to the average person is that some US banks are issuing purchase PINs that will serve as a backup validation at automated kiosks and some are not. I'd advise people to check with their banks, but customer service reps often don't really understand it either. A good rule of thumb, that you allude to, is that if you are given a PIN unsolicited, it is likely a PIN for the chip and will work in kiosks. If you have to request a PIN, it is likely only for cash advances and will not work for purchases.

"...it is VERY IMPORTANT not to enter the PIN on many AMERICAN chip cards, because you will be getting a cash advance. That has expensive implications for the month you do it, and the month after, because of FEE and INTEREST charges...."

This is only true if you are using a credit card in an ATM, not if you are making a purchase.

^^^ Interesting to learn Mike. Everything I had read indicated that the chip had to be engaged in order to change the PIN.

edit:
Seems Mike deleted his post about being able to remotely change his PIN tied to the chip. So perhaps I was correct, the chip's PIN can only be changed when the chip is engaged in a terminal (at a bank or a chip-enabled ATM). Note that this is different than changing one's cash advance PIN, which is tied to the magnetic strip on the card. That can be done remotely over the phone or by messaging.

I can only echo the point made by Doug and Nancy regarding the PIN and cash advances. If you have a card with a chip and live in the US, it is likely a chip and signature. If you have PIN, it is only good for cash advances at an ATM and you would not be prompted for a PIN at a sales transaction.

If you are one of the few that do have a true Chip and PIN (Likely one of the Military related Credit Unions, a couple of credit cards like Barclays or high end credit cards, or like me a Business Credit Card) you still will likely be asked for a signature in Europe about half the time.

Finally, I have to question the paranoia over taking a Credit Card Cash Advance. To me it is one tool among several when I am travelling. In my tool box, my debit /ATM is best at about 1% cost (many on here have transaction costs and maybe foreign transaction fee (FTF) of 3%), My no foreign fee credit card at about 1% cost, but interest if I choose not to pay it off. A credit card with a 3% FTF that I rarely use. Then a cash advance, which does cost me 5%, but I can get more cash than I would need.

Now yes, I do pay the horrendous 24.9% interest, but if I choose not to pay that off until the next statement, it amounts to 2% of the transaction (changing my cost to 7%). I typically would though go online and pay it off within a couple days of posting, dropping the interest to about a Dollar and keeping it close to 5%..

Compare the above to that many people do not think twice about using a CC with a 3 or 5% fee, or getting currency in the US for 5 to 10%, the cash advance is not really that out of line if you manage it properly.

My Capital One Venture card sent me a new card with a chip and allowed me to set up a pin. As I read the details of the new card I believe it referred to the pin as "for cash advances" only. I got the Venture card because it doesn't have international fees but they may reap a ton of fees from people who think they've been sent a normal chip and pin card to use when they travel.

Brad,

As some have indicated above, the only time a Cash Advance would come into play is if you withdraw money at an ATM. A transaction at a merchant or POS will not ask for a PIN unless your card is CHIP and PIN enabled.

Even a Chip and Pin card used at an ATM for Cash Withdrawal will result in a Cash Advance.

So the result is the same, Use the card at an ATM (PIN required)...Cash Advance. Use elsewhere, PIN or Signature...Credit Card Transaction.

This whole thread demonstrates the total idiocy of the US implementation of Chip technology. It has made everything so incredibly confusing. Doug's comments align with my understanding of how this all works and if you're trying to understand this re-read what he has posted. I think the simple thing to remember is to use your debit card in the ATM and your credit card for you purchases. If you mess up and use the credit card for a cash advance, go online as quickly as you can and pay off the advance to minimize your interest charges.

And someday, we may get Chip and Pin. Sigh.

Pam

Just to add another wrinkle, it is common for SWIPED cards in Denmark for the reader to then ask for a PIN!

I have had chip and signature cards fail for me in some some instances like an Aldi store in Munich where I ended up having to pay in cash.

I have had a chip and signature card work like chip and PIN at Paris and Copenhagen metro kiosks where the PIN was asked for and entered just like chip and PIN. The same chip and signature card failed at the UK's Wal*Mart (Asda) unmanned pumps, an unmanned French turnpike toll booth, and a Munich tram kiosk.

Bottom line is carry at least two cards and with at least one having a chip and you will usually but NOT ALWAYS be able to complete the transaction. My experience is that the UK, France and Italy are most accepting of standard US swipe cards.

I have chip AND pin from Andrews Federal Credit Union and it works just fine...especially in the Paris metro kiosks. And, no, I'm not getting a cash advance.

I recently received my updated chip Barclays Visa, when activating it I was prompted to make a pin to use in unmanned kiosks in Europe. We leave for France on Sunday, I'm going to test it even though it has a 3% foreign transaction fee. It is supposed to be chip/sign and chip/pin.
Hopefully it works, it will be a good backup if w get stuck at tolls, gas stations or other kiosks.

It all gives me a headache
Here is what I know from experience:

My Bank of America chip and signature MC and my Chip and signature ATM have never been rejected in 6 years and a dozen countries with 2 exceptions. One involved a shoe store in Romania (the MC) and another at a train ticket machine in Hungary (the ATM). In both instances a PIN was required. In both instances I input 4 random numbers and the transaction went through. Not suggesting anyone count on this.

I also have a European issue chip and pin card and when I had to change the pin I had to go to the bank where they inserted it in a machine to make the change.

We've experienced a lot of promises by our US issuer of a "chip and PIN" card (we were issued a four-digit PIN), but when it came time to use the card in automated kiosks (for storage lockers, trains, u-bahn, s-bahn--in Norway, Sweden, Germany and Italy) the card WOULDN'T work. Fortunately the machines took cash and we had enough local currency to make do. The bottom line is get a card with a chip and "PIN", you will be told it will work, but don't count on it actually working.; you won't know until you try to use it (have cash). As others have said, the card will work peachy where there is a human being to process the card, but then . . .

We just returned from a three week trip which included England, France and Belgium. Our main credit card was a Capital One Visa - which has a chip. We have a PIN for the card, but never once were we required to enter it. Used the card for buying train tickets, boat rides, restaurants and gift shops. Not one problem and never entered a PIN. We were traveling with a friend whose main card was American Express. She had multiple problems with many places not taking American Express.

We used our Capital One 360 card for ATM withdrawals. No problems here either. Did not incur any extra foreign transaction fees for either card.

We just returned from a three week trip which included England, France and Belgium. Our main credit card was a Capital One Visa - which has a chip. We have a PIN for the card, but never once were we required to enter it. Used the card for buying train tickets, boat rides, restaurants and gift shops. Not one problem and never entered a PIN. We were traveling with a friend whose main card was American Express. She had multiple problems with many places not taking American Express.

We used our Capital One 360 card for ATM withdrawals. No problems here either. Did not incur any extra foreign transaction fees for either card.